Tokyo - Japanese local authorities approved the restart of the world's largest nuclear plant on Friday, a key step in the process to bring it back online after the 2011 Fukushima disaster.
Hideyo Hanazumi, governor of Niigata Prefecture, where the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant is located, told a news conference that he "would approve" the resumption, which will require final permission from the country's nuclear regulator.
The Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant was taken offline when Japan pulled the plug on nuclear power after a tsunami caused the 2011 meltdown of the Fukushima Daiichi plant.
But the resource-poor country now wants to revive atomic energy and reduce its dependence on imported fossil fuels.
A total of 14 reactors -- mostly in western and southern regions -- have already resumed operation after strict safety standards were imposed.
The Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant will be the first restart for Fukushima operator Tepco after the disaster, once it gets final approval.
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